Going to Church - A Starting Point

Here are some aspects about going to church. The points made are very brief but hopefully you will be able to follow up and learn more.

Romans 12 : 5-8

Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.
If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach;
if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.

Psalm 100 : 1-5

Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Colossians 1 : 15-20

He (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

Ephesians 5 : 25-30

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church for we are members of his body.

Psalm 150 : 1-6

Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord.

Going to church does not, of itself, make you a Christian (just as visiting France once a week does not make you French). A Christian is a person who has a personal relationship with God through a belief and trust in his son Jesus Christ. That relationship, or the search for it, should then naturally lead you to go to church. But why?

Initially, the Church meeting offers you the place to feel wanted by other Christians who will welcome you and a place to feel wanted by a God who cares for you and promises to respond to us in our need.

Secondly, the Church is a place where you can meet God. It sounds extraordinary, but Christians believe we know God. We meet him in Jesus through his word, the Bible, which is explained with clarity and therefore powerful relevance. This form of preaching in Church equips us to grow in our relationship with Jesus throughout the whole week.

The Church meeting also provides you with a framework within which you can praise God in collective prayer and song. Song is an important element in the praising of God. There is a whole book in the Bible, the Psalms, devoted to songs of praise to God. The words of Psalm 100 tell of the joy of coming together to sing praises to God. As well as song, a Church service gives you a chance to take part in confession, praise, prayer and teaching. Additionally, there are specific services which have a role to play in our faith. For example, the communion service provides a time to remember the sacrifice of Jesus through the taking of bread and wine as the disciples did at the last supper.

Going to Church also provides the invaluable blessing of Christian fellowship. Christian fellowship is a very deep form of friendship that is knit together by a uniting faith. Being an active member of a Church can mean knowing other Christians who will look out for you and support you, as you would support them. The world can be a hostile place to the Christian faith and the ability to meet with other Christians can revitalise you and help you move forward in your Christian life. This may be after the service over a cup of tea, in a midweek group, or just by spending time with friends from Church.

But there are more reasons for going to Church than the more personal ones so far mentioned.

Firstly, there is a great witness to God in going to and belonging to a Church. The church is a visible statement of our faith that the world around us cannot totally ignore. In Britain, there are millions of Christians whose faith can be seen on Sunday when they go to Church. Enderby alone has four Churches. And Enderby is just one village in one of many nations filled with Churches in every town and village.

However, there is more than just witness. Being a member of a Church can give you the opportunity to work with other Christians to achieve things and reach out to the world around you. The cooperation involved is beautifully described in Romans 12 : 5-8 in which St. Paul told the Christians of Rome that each of them could play a role in the Church, depending on the gifts they had. Cooperation can mean that a Church can raise money for charities, help people in need, reach out with the gospel to the community, support other Christians e.t.c... Things that would be difficult to do by yourself. As a member of an active Church you can be available for God to use you and achieve much more.

And of course going to Church is not primarily about you, it is about God. You are coming to Church to think of Him and praise Him. He is a glorious and wonderful God who deserves our everlasting praise. As psalm 150 says, we are called to 'Praise ye the Lord'.

Also it is good to remember that worshiping God is not an act that should be only done in Church. Worshiping God should be an everyday part of our lives in our homes, at work and in the Church.

For non-Christians the 'Church' can seem to be the buildings that they pass by on the way to work, such as the one in the picture, but for Christians it is so much more that. Indeed, a Church can exist without a building, for the Church, as St. Paul states in Romans 12:5-8, is a body of people who believe and trust in God through Jesus Christ. And each person in that 'body' has a role to play.

The Greek word 'ecclesia' that is translated as Church in the new testament means an assembly of Christians. That assembly referred to Christians in one place or of the whole body of Christian believers. So when the New testament mentions the Church it is talking about an assembly of the men and women who knew that Jesus Christ is Lord.

The emerging Church, described in the Bible book of Acts, did not immediately construct it's own buildings to worship in. Indeed, those first Christians continued to worship in the Jewish temples, although their worship was supplemented by teaching, prayer and breaking of bread in other places.

Also, the emerging Church seems to have only slowly formed an administrative organisation, more out of need than intention, with roles being given out on the basis of people's God given gifts as put forward by Paul in in Romans 12:5-8.

So, the Church described in Acts is not a Church of buildings and organisations. It is a Church of Christians and of faith in God, through Jesus.

Of course, these days the worldwide 'Church' is administered by separate Church organisations ('denominations'); Enderby Parish Church itself belonging to the Church of England. These 'Churches' have different buildings, traditions and histories that would be too complicated to go into. But it is worth emphasising that when anyone is contemplating joining a particular Church, it is essential to ensure that it is God/Christ centred as well as not adding anything to the gospel message contained in the Bible. A lively Church centred on Jesus should have many of the qualities mentioned in the 'why go to Church?' sections to the left.

Colossians 1 : 15-20 explains that Jesus Christ has been given supremacy over the world and particularly that he is 'the head of the body, the Church'. Therefore, whatever the organisational structures are that administer an individual Church (archbishops, elders, synods, committees, e.t.c...), its 'head' should be Jesus Christ. So we, as Christians who make up that Church must look to Jesus as our 'head' . This does not allow us to ignore our Church leaders, for the Bible tells us to respect our spiritual leaders, but all should recognise that Jesus is Lord.

And we see in Ephesians 5 : 25-30 that Jesus Christ does not just have 'headship' over the Church, He also loves the Church as a husband should love his wife. This is why you may have heard the Church called 'the bride of Christ'. Jesus sacrificed himself for the Church (in other words those who follow him) and wants the Church to be pure and unblemished for when he returns. This glorious vision of the Church is clearly not perfectly reflected in the Church we see today, but it is the ideal that the Church should strive towards.

So the Christian Church of the Bible is the assembly of Christians who believe in God through a trust in his son, Jesus Christ. The whole 'Church' has Christ at its head and he loves and cares for that Church. All believing Christians are members of that Church and, as members of the body have individual roles to do, so each Christian has a role to play in the Church.

At Enderby Parish Church we extend a warm welcome to all who want to be a part of God's church, or want to come and learn more. The services are described in the 'services' pages. We also have courses and groups that may interest you. We have social events to enhance our fellowship and reach out into the community of Enderby. If you do have questions or concerns about coming to Church, please contact the vicar via the contacts page.

The real church is not a building but the people who believe and trust in Jesus Christ.

Going to Church provides an opportunity to sing and pray to God

Going to Church can provide Christian fellowship that can be of great value in life.

You can receive important Christian teaching through Church services, groups or courses.

Being part of a Church enables us to witness to the world and collectively do things we could not do by ourselves.

Jesus Christ is the head of the Church.

Jesus Christ loves the Church and sacrificed himself for it.

Easton's Bible Dictionary Definition of the Church

Derived probably from the Greek kuriakon (i.e., "the Lord's house"), which was used by ancient authors for the place of worship.
In the New Testament it is the translation of the Greek word ecclesia, which is synonymous with the Hebrew _kahal_ of the Old Testament, both words meaning simply an assembly, the character of which can only be known from the connection in which the word is found. There is no clear instance of its being used for a place of meeting or of worship, although in post-apostolic times it early received this meaning. Nor is this word ever used to denote the inhabitants of a country united in the same profession, as when we say the "Church of England," the "Church of Scotland," etc.
We find the word ecclesia used in the following senses in the New Testament: (1.) It is translated "assembly" in the ordinary classical sense (Acts 19:32, 39, 41).
(2.) It denotes the whole body of the redeemed, all those whom the Father has given to Christ, the invisible catholic church (Eph. 5:23, 25, 27, 29; Heb. 12:23).
(3.) A few Christians associated together in observing the ordinances of the gospel are an ecclesia (Rom. 16:5; Col. 4:15).
(4.) All the Christians in a particular city, whether they assembled together in one place or in several places for religious worship, were an ecclesia. Thus all the disciples in Antioch, forming several congregations, were one church (Acts 13:1); so also we read of the "church of God at Corinth" (1 Cor. 1:2), "the church at Jerusalem" (Acts 8:1), "the church of Ephesus" (Rev. 2:1), etc.
(5.) The whole body of professing Christians throughout the world (1 Cor. 15:9; Gal. 1:13; Matt. 16:18) are the church of Christ.
The church visible "consists of all those throughout the world that profess the true religion, together with their children." It is called "visible" because its members are known and its assemblies are public. Here there is a mixture of "wheat and chaff," of saints and sinners. "God has commanded his people to organize themselves into distinct visible ecclesiastical communities, with constitutions, laws, and officers, badges, ordinances, and discipline, for the great purpose of giving visibility to his kingdom, of making known the gospel of that kingdom, and of gathering in all its elect subjects. Each one of these distinct organized communities which is faithful to the great King is an integral part of the visible church, and all together constitute the catholic or universal visible church." A credible profession of the true religion constitutes a person a member of this church. This is "the kingdom of heaven," whose character and progress are set forth in the parables recorded in Matt. 13.
The children of all who thus profess the true religion are members of the visible church along with their parents. Children are included in every covenant God ever made with man. They go along with their parents (Gen. 9:9-17; 12:1-3; 17:7; Ex. 20:5; Deut. 29:10-13). Peter, on the day of Pentecost, at the beginning of the New Testament dispensation, announces the same great principle. "The promise [just as to Abraham and his seed the promises were made] is unto you, and to your children" (Acts 2:38, 39). The children of believing parents are "holy", i.e., are "saints", a title which designates the members of the Christian church (1 Cor. 7:14). (See BAPTISM.)
The church invisible "consists of the whole number of the elect that have been, are, or shall be gathered into one under Christ, the head thereof." This is a pure society, the church in which Christ dwells. It is the body of Christ. it is called "invisible" because the greater part of those who constitute it are already in heaven or are yet unborn, and also because its members still on earth cannot certainly be distinguished. The qualifications of membership in it are internal and are hidden. It is unseen except by Him who "searches the heart." "The Lord knoweth them that are his" (2 Tim. 2:19).
The church to which the attributes, prerogatives, and promises appertaining to Christ's kingdom belong, is a spiritual body consisting of all true believers, i.e., the church invisible.
(1.) Its unity. God has ever had only one church on earth. We sometimes speak of the Old Testament Church and of the New Testament church, but they are one and the same. The Old Testament church was not to be changed but enlarged (Isa. 49:13-23; 60:1-14). When the Jews are at length restored, they will not enter a new church, but will be grafted again into "their own olive tree" (Rom. 11:18-24; comp. Eph. 2:11-22). The apostles did not set up a new organization. Under their ministry disciples were "added" to the "church" already existing (Acts 2:47).
(2.) Its universality. It is the "catholic" church; not confined to any particular country or outward organization, but comprehending all believers throughout the whole world.
(3.) Its perpetuity. It will continue through all ages to the end of the world. It can never be destroyed. It is an "everlasting kindgdom."